Title 39, Public Officers and Employees

(a) A distributee may elect, at the time and in the manner prescribed by the administrator, to have all or part of an eligible rollover distribution paid directly to an eligible retirement plan specified by the distributee in the direct rollover. (b) Except as provided by AS 39.3…

(a) Except as provided in (c) of this section, an inactive employee, not on leave-without-pay status or layoff status, is entitled to receive a refund of the balance of the employee contribution account. (b) An employee who is reemployed with an employer and whose contributions h…

Upon the death of a retired employee, the employee's beneficiary shall be paid (1) the excess of the balance in the employee contribution account of the deceased employee as of the date of the beginning of the employee's pension payments over the sum of the pension payments previ…

An active employee may withdraw a savings account only if the employee receives the consent of the administrator. The administrator may permit a withdrawal before termination of employment only in cases of financial need.

(a) Each employer, except as provided in (h) of this section, shall contribute to the system every payroll period an amount calculated by applying a rate of 22 percent of the greater of the total of all base salaries (1) paid by the employer to employees who are active members of…

In addition to the contributions that the state is required to make under AS 39.35.255 as an employer, the state shall contribute to the plan each July 1 or, if funds are not available on July 1, as soon after July 1 as funds become available, an amount for the ensuing fiscal yea…

Contributions made by an employer under AS 39.35.255 and 39.35.280 shall be separately computed for benefits provided by AS 39.35.535 and shall be deposited in the Alaska retiree health care trust established under AS 39.30.097(a).

The commissioner shall adopt regulations to ensure the orderly and efficient transmittal of employer contributions.

(a) An active employee is entitled to credited service for periods of employment with the state after January 1, 1961, regardless of the office, department, division, or agency of the state in which the person was employed. For purposes of AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680, the University…

(a) An active employee is entitled to credited service for periods of employment with a political subdivision or a public organization beginning with the effective date of the employer's participation in the plan. The employee is also entitled to credited service for periods of e…

(a) A leave of absence with pay authorized by an employer is not considered as interrupting employment. If the employee is a permanent part-time employee, credited service shall be granted on a basis proportionate to that which would have been earned as a permanent full-time empl…

(a) A vested employee is entitled to credited service for active military service in the armed forces of the United States, either by enlistment or induction, if the employee received a discharge under honorable conditions and is not entitled to receive retirement benefits from t…

(a) A vested employee is entitled to credited service for employment as a village public safety officer under the program established under AS 18.65.670 for which the employee has not otherwise received credited service under this plan. An employee is not entitled to credited ser…

(a) A vested employee is entitled to credited service for periods in which the employee regularly rendered full-time personal service to an employer but was not qualified to participate in the plan because of the exclusion of temporary workers as described in AS 39.35.680(22)(C)(…

(a) An employee who completes three years of credited service with the state after January 1, 1961, for which the employee makes contributions required by AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 is entitled to credited service for service rendered (1) before January 1, 1961, as an employee of t…

(a) Subject to AS 39.35.450, a terminated employee is eligible for a normal retirement benefit (1) at age 60 with at least five years credited service; (2) with at least 20 years of credited service as a peace officer or firefighter; or (3) with at least 30 years of credited serv…

(a) The entire interest of a member must be distributed or must begin to be distributed not later than the member's required beginning date. (b) If a member dies after the distribution of the member's interest has begun but before the distribution has been completed, the remainin…

(a) An active or inactive member who has never been vested in this plan or in the teachers' retirement plan under AS 14.25.009 — 14.25.220, who has at least two years of credited service in this plan, and who has membership service in the teachers' retirement system may claim cre…

(a) An elected public officer is eligible for a public officer benefit if the officer is retired under AS 14.25.009 — 14.25.220. Only fully paid credited service as an elected public officer of a municipality or other political subdivision, earned while the municipality or politi…

(a) Subject to AS 39.35.450, an employee is eligible for a normal retirement benefit at age 60 with at least two years of credited service if the employee also is eligible for a normal retirement salary under AS 14.25 (teachers' retirement system). (b) Subject to AS 39.35.450, an…

(a) Notwithstanding former AS 39.37.050, a former member of the Alaska Territorial Legislature who is receiving a benefit on June 5, 1989 under the Elected Public Officers Retirement System and who has at least 30 years of credited service in the territorial and state legislature…

The balance of the employee's savings account shall be paid in one of the following options as elected by the employee: (1) a lump sum payment; or (2) a life annuity on a full cash refund or term-certain basis; or (3) installments over a designated period of time.

(a) An employee is eligible for a nonoccupational disability benefit if the employee's employment is terminated because of a total and apparently permanent nonoccupational disability, as defined in AS 39.35.680, before the employee's normal retirement date and after five or more …

(a) An employee is eligible for an occupational disability benefit if employment is terminated because of a total and apparently permanent occupational disability, as defined in AS 39.35.680, before the employee's normal retirement date. (b) The occupational disability benefits a…

An employee appointed to disability benefits under AS 39.35.400 or 39.35.410 shall apply to the division of vocational rehabilitation within 30 days of the date disability benefits commence. The employee shall be enrolled in a rehabilitation program if the employee meets the elig…

(a) If the death of an employee occurs from nonoccupational causes after completing less than one year of credited service, the employee's designated beneficiary shall be paid the balance of the employee contribution account. If the death of an employee occurs from nonoccupationa…

(a) [Repealed, § 16 ch 123 SLA 1976.] (b) If (1) the death of an employee occurs before the employee's retirement and before the employee's normal retirement date, and (2) the proximate cause of death is a bodily injury sustained or a hazard undergone while in the performance and…

(a) [Repealed, § 19 ch 123 SLA 1976.] (b) Upon the death of a disabled employee who is receiving or is entitled to receive an occupational disability benefit, the administrator shall pay the surviving spouse a surviving spouse's pension, equal to 40 percent of the employee's mont…

(a) Benefits payable under this section are in place of benefits payable under AS 39.35.370, 39.35.385, and former AS 39.35.460. Upon filing an application with the administrator or when a disabled employee first attains eligibility for normal retirement under AS 39.35.400(f) or …

A former spouse shall be treated as a spouse or surviving spouse to the extent required by a qualified domestic relations order. Rights under the order do not take effect until the order is filed with the administrator.

(a) Once each year the administrator shall increase benefit payments to eligible disabled members, to persons age 60 or older receiving benefits under this plan in the preceding calendar year, and to persons who have received benefits under this plan for at least five years who a…

(a) While residing in the state, a person receiving a benefit under AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 who is 65 years of age or older or who is receiving a disability benefit is entitled to receive a monthly cost-of-living allowance in addition to the basic benefit. The amount of this all…

(a) An employee who is eligible for a benefit calculated in accordance with AS 39.35.370(c) is entitled to a benefit of at least $25 a month for each year of credited service, not including adjustments made under AS 39.35.340 for military service, AS 39.35.360 for credit for earl…

(a) Each employee shall designate the beneficiary or beneficiaries to whom the administrator shall distribute benefits payable under AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 as a consequence of the employee's death. Notwithstanding a previous designation of beneficiary, a person who is the spous…

If no application for benefits or for refund has been filed with the administrator by July 1 following the date on which an inactive member, except an employee on leave-without-pay status or on layoff status, would attain age 75, or if no application for benefits or for refund ha…

(a) Except as provided in AS 29.45.030(a)(1) or in (b) of this section, employee contributions and other amounts held in the plan are exempt from Alaska state and local taxes. Except as provided in this subsection and in (b) of this section, amounts held on behalf of, or payable …

Employee contributions and other amounts held in the plan and retirement benefits payable under AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 are exempt from levy to enforce the collection of a debt as provided in AS 09.38 (exemptions).

A retired employee may, in writing, request the administrator to suspend, for any period of time, payment of all or part of the benefits to which the employee is entitled. The administrator shall grant the request and may not require the retired employee to disclose a reason for …

(a) When a change or error is made in the records maintained by the plan or in the contributions made on behalf of an employee or an error is made in computing a benefit, and, as a result, an employee or beneficiary is entitled to receive from the plan more or less than the emplo…

(a) Upon request by an affected member or beneficiary under (b) of this section, the commissioner of administration may waive an adjustment or any portion of an adjustment made under AS 39.35.520 if, in the opinion of the commissioner of administration, (1) the adjustment or port…

(a) Any active member may elect to irrevocably relinquish peace officer or firefighter status with the plan and to retain all credited service as if it had been acquired as a member other than a peace officer or firefighter. (b) In order to relinquish peace officer or firefighter…

An employee may not simultaneously receive a pension under more than one section of AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680. However, benefits under AS 39.35.420(b), 39.35.430, 39.35.440, or 39.35.450 shall be paid in addition to the benefits or service credit a person is entitled to receive be…

(a) Except as provided in (d) of this section, the following persons are entitled to major medical insurance coverage under this section: (1) for employees first hired before July 1, 1986, (A) an employee who is receiving a monthly benefit from the plan and who has elected covera…

(a) If, as a result of service credit claimed for which there is a corresponding indebtedness existing at retirement, the member's retirement benefit is actuarially reduced and the resultant benefit is less than it would have been if the service credit had not been claimed, the r…

(a) Benefits of AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 are exempt from Alaska state and municipal income taxes. (b) Benefits paid under AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 may be subject to federal income taxes as provided in 26 U.S.C. 72.

(a) An amendment of AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 is not retroactive unless its retroactivity is expressly stated in the amendment. (b) The monthly amount of a benefit payable under AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.680 shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of AS 39.35.095 — 39.35.…